


History Lesson with a Lizard

by That1Demon64



Category: Original Work
Genre: Campfire, Campfire stories, Gen, History, Homies chilling, OC, OCs - Freeform, Original Character(s), Original Species
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-30
Updated: 2020-07-30
Packaged: 2021-03-06 00:21:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,582
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25614268
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/That1Demon64/pseuds/That1Demon64
Summary: Ricky sits around the campfire with his new pal, Chastin, as he explains the history of his species and reveals a bit of his own nature.
Kudos: 1





	History Lesson with a Lizard

Chastin threw the pile of sticks into the fire, causing an uproar in the flame. Ricky flinched, realizing he may have been a bit too close to the flames. Chastin noticed and giggled a bit, “Come on little dude, you’ll be fine. I wouldn’t let you burn.”

“A little hard to believe that sometimes,” he paused after considering his words, “No offense.”

“None taken, kiddo.”

He sat down on the log and stretched, smirking. He rested his chin in his hands, beginning to speak. “It’s been forever since I’ve had company, it’s refreshing having a friendly face over.”

“Glad to be here.”

“It’s also been forever since I’ve had a human know about me… er, have a human see my natural form, I've interacted with tons of your kind with a different form! It’s new to see someone- a kid even- not run away at the sight of the tail. You’re from Karson, right? Should’ve known, the place has too many creatures to count. Haven’t been there myself but I’ve heard Dracula even lives there!”

Chastin realized he was rambling on and on and decided to stop. “Sorry, I’m getting ahead of myself, I’ve barely let you speak your mind!” His ears perked up, showing he intended to listen. Ricky, who only knew this guy for two days, was still on the verge of freaking out, yet he managed to keep himself calm and collected. ‘Let him speak his mind’, huh? Ricky had many questions, each more intrusive than the next, while some were incredibly mild and were more out of childish curiosity than anything, might as well start with the appetizers before getting into the full course.

“May I ask a question? A few, actually.”

“Sure, go ahead,” Chastin leaned back on his log, arms behind his head. 

Ricky sat up straight, “How long have you been living here? If this is your home, anyway.”

Chastin sat up again, smiling before he began to answer. The ‘home’ wasn’t a nice one. It was a large cave with a campfire set up in the middle of it. What seemed to be a makeshift bed rested in the far corner, composed of a (possibly stolen) blanket, plucked weeds and strands of grass and a sack filled with feathers. “Been here for a few years now, it’s definitely my more stable living arrangement. But sometimes if I’m lucky I may find a few dollars on the ground and rent out a hotel room in town for a night or two, and if I’m feeling risky I may pretend to be a lost traveler in need of a place to stay, or maybe even take the form of someone who lives in town and rest in their home until they come home for the day, either way all my other options involve a bit of shapeshifting.”

“Does ‘find a few dollars on the ground’ translate to ‘steal someone’s wallet’ in your language?” Ricky clearly remembered their first interaction, he took the form of one of his classmates and stole his wallet, yet he didn’t consider the possibility of Ricky putting up a fight and chasing him. 

“Nah, stealing money just for a night at a hotel is risky, I save that money for food and stuff.”

“Right… why don’t you just turn into a dog or something? Wouldn’t you get more out of pretending to be a poor, lost stray than stealing someone’s identity for a day?”

He shrugged, “I tried that once! Went backfire quickly, though. Someone called the pound and I got locked in a cage for about four minutes until I transformed into a snake and wiggled out of the bars.”

Ricky was definitely amazed, this guy could turn into anything! At any time! Creatures like him definitely weren’t seen in Karson. This brought him to his next question, “Are there species native to certain areas? I haven’t seen anyone like you in Karson.”

Chastin stood up and walked to his bed, grabbing something out of view, soon revealed to be a pack of marshmallows. He walked back over and placed them down next to his log. “Yeah, some of us are only native to specific states. Like, uh,” he transformed his arm into a stick and placed a marshmallow on it, letting it hover over the fire, “Y’know how Mothman is a part of West Virginia folklore? Seeing him in Karson would just be weird, right? Some of us are only seen in places like West Virginia, you wouldn’t see anyone like me naturally outside of Willowburg.” 

His kind is only native to this area, okay, very interesting. Ricky thought, there was a lot to learn from this green fella. “Ok, one last question… well maybe two.”

“Ask away, kid.”

“I’ve met other shapeshifters, but none of them ever looked or acted like you. They can only transform into some animal and a humanoid with… striking features. Plus they all have some title added to Shapeshifter, like Wolf-en or… some really long term that’s the scientific name for bat, you just call yourself a shapeshifter, what gives? What’s the difference? Why are you and your kind so special?”

Chastin paused for a brief moment, actually having to think about his response. He finally cleared his throat and started talking. “You ask some good questions for a twelve year old.”

“I’m fourteen.”

“Fourteen year old. I’ll try my best to explain, it’s, it’s a long story,” he shifted in his seat and took a breath. He was about to chat Ricky’s ear off, anyone in range of them could tell. 

“It all started years ago, back before the supernatural hid from the humans. Shapeshifters, like every creature, lived in peace with them, but nothing stays good forever. One day, humans began to fear us for our abilities, seeing as we could easily take the form of something dangerous, or someone they trusted, so to avoid their anxiety-filled wrath we took to hiding in plain sight; animals! There were other factors too like predators and such but you guys suck so you were a main part of it, no offense,” Ricky took no offense. 

“Many of us took to becoming animals, some small like bats, and others fearsome like wolves. Some, a lot actually, got attached to their forms, rarely transforming into other species or things. Others experimented with forms, keeping things fresh and unpredictable. Ultimately, we all ended up resembling an animal, one way or another. As time went on and evolution and adaptation took us over, many forgot their old routes, only being able to shapeshift into a humanoid form and a certain animal, and even then their humanoid form still had remnants of their animal self, usually ears and tails.”

He sighed, “Shapeshifters used to have a human appearance, our only difference being that we had four fingers. Even then we could give ourselves an extra one with our abilities to fit in more. But, like I said, evolution took its course, so we changed- hey you want one?” He interrupted himself with the offer of a roasted marshmallow, as he began roasting plenty of them while delving into his history. Ricky refused, he’d rather not eat something that was cooked using someone’s body part, “Eh, your loss, where were we… oh yeah!”

He ate the marshmallow and began again, “Even shapeshifters who never stuck to one form changed, we took a reptilian appearance, some could describe us like chameleons, just more attractive and human-like. And having visible ears. I think it’s really just the tail and color scheme that makes people associate us with them- but I’m getting off topic- basically, the Shapeshifters who were stuck with only one species separated themselves from their likeness, naming themselves after their forms, while people like me stuck to our original name.”

Wow.

Ricky would’ve never expected such a long winded response, although he would’ve much preferred a shortened recap the story itself was interesting nonetheless. “Wow… I mean… wow… that’s, that’s so cool? I think. Like, I would’ve never expected evolution? I guess I just thought it sorta… just happened.”

“Like evolution?”

“I mean, I guess. Or maybe just that you guys were just… born differently. I don’t know.”

Chastin leaned in and booped him on the nose, “Well now you do, kiddo! Any more questions?”

“Not right now, I think you just answered all of them with your mini history lecture.”

“Cool, I was running out of breath telling you all that.”

He glanced outside the cave, gawking at the shade of the sky, “Jesus, it's late. You should be heading home, kid. I’m not gathering more grass just so you can spend the night, plus I’m sure your fancy schmancy school would be worried if you weren’t in your dorm by now.”

It was getting super late, Ricky quickly stood up, “Thanks for having me over. It was fun, maybe we could do it some other time?”

He grinned. “Maybe! I’m looking to find more stuff to grill, maybe when you come back I’ll have some hot dogs… and a stick for you to use.”

“I’m looking forward to it,” Ricky bid his farewell and ran out of the cave, heading through the woods to town. His brain trying to digest the information he just received as he passed by trees and brush. As well as the mental image of Chastin with a stick for a hand. Did he just make a new, supernatural friend? He sure hoped so.

  
  


**Author's Note:**

> OC TIME OC TIME


End file.
